Safe and Small
by BuzzCat
Summary: Steve comes home to find Darcy knitting tiny socks and they aren't for the cat.


Steve walked into the apartment, leaning over to untie his shoes and push them into their corner. He straightened up and unwrapped the knitted scarf from around his neck,

"Darcy! I'm home!"

"In here!" she called. Steve rounded the corner and found Darcy in the living room, the cat in its basket beside her rocking chair and a mass of yarn in her lap. It wasn't an unusual sight but it made his heart warm every time he caught sight of his beautiful wife. Something about it just reminded him of the old days, before the serum and the ice. Somehow, the reminder didn't hurt. Darcy looked up at him and smiled,

"Hi! How was the fundraiser?"

"Good, good. How was your day?" He walked over to Darcy and kissed her. Darcy replied,

"It was good. I was _inspired_."

"Inspired?"

"I was inspired to make something _new_."

"Oh?" asked Steve with a smile.

"Socks."

"Socks? Again?"

"Yep." she said, counting stitches. Steve watched her for a moment,

"Aren't they a little smaller than the others?"

"Yep. That's where the inspiration comes from." replied Darcy, a tiny smile on her face. Steve's brow furrowed.

"Tiny socks? What inspired tiny socks? I thought Loki didn't like his booties." Loki the long-haired cat mreowed at the mention of the rather disastrous moment that Darcy had decided he needed booties to protect against the cold New York City winter. Darcy shook her head,

"Nope. Not for Loki." she said. Steve sighed and sank onto the couch beside Darcy's chair,

"Not for Loki…" The light bulb came on, "Is someone having a baby?"

"Yes they are." said Darcy. Steve's brow furrowed again. Darcy was being unusually tight lipped about this. He hadn't noticed any of their friends gaining weight. Darcy had a few friends outside of SHIELD that he didn't know, but she wasn't close enough with any of them to actually make them baby booties. He shrugged,

"Who is it?"

"Guess."

"Is it Pepper?" he asked. Darcy snorted,

"Pepper is a smart lady. She knows better than to procreate with Tony Stark for the next five years."

"Natasha?" Any Avengers activities would be a lot more interesting if the media caught wind that the Black Widow was pregnant. Maybe they'd leave him alone for five minutes. That train of thought derailed when Darcy shook her head,

"Nope."

"Jane?"

"Do you really think Thor would be quiet for two seconds if Jane was pregnant?" asked Darcy. Steve had to concede the point.

"Hill?"

"Maria? She doesn't even seem the type to want kids."

"I give up. Who is it?" Darcy set her needles down in her lap, looking up at Steve with a mischievous smile,

"Think. Think very very hard." she said. Steve thought very hard. They really didn't know anyone else who could be pregnant, unless there were some Asgardian laws of nature that he really didn't want to think about. He looked down at the booties. They were almost finished, alternating stripes of red, white, and blue. It clicked. Steve jumped up,

"You're…you're…"

"Pregnant?" asked Darcy with a smirk. Steve stayed frozen, afraid that moving would somehow make it false. Darcy nodded with a laugh, "Yes, yes it's me. Jesus, Captain. Took you long enough." She set her knitting off to the side and stood up, wrapping her arms around the still immobile Steve Rogers. Just when Darcy was starting to get worried, Steve snapped back into movement, wrapping his arms tightly around Darcy and spinning her around, careful that she didn't hit anything in their tiny apartment. Darcy laughed and it filled Steve's mind. He set her down and pulled her in for a searing kiss. When he at last pulled back, he leaned his forehead against her, looking down at her,

"We're having a baby." he said quietly. Darcy smiled and nodded just the tiniest bit,

"We're having a baby." Steve slowly spun her into his arms until Darcy's back was pressed flush to his chest. His hands came down to wrap around her belly. Somewhere in there was their baby, still safe and small. Steve closed his eyes and a contented smile slowly unfurled across his face. They were having a baby.


End file.
